


on the beach

by lazyfish



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Canonical Character Death, F/M, this is a blatant ripoff of the ER episode, what of it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2019-06-24
Packaged: 2020-05-19 02:29:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19347694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lazyfish/pseuds/lazyfish
Summary: Bobbi and Hunter receive a letter from Tahiti.





	on the beach

It’s not typical for them to get mail. Bobbi and Hunter have stayed in the same place for about four months now, which is longer than they’ve ever managed before. They even call it  _ home _ , a fact that is not lost on either of them. After having home being a person for so long, it is strange for it to be a place again.

Regardless of whether or not they call their house their home, they don’t get mail often. There’s no one to write to them, really - anyone who would want to isn’t allowed to. Even though they’ve lost any physical tail, Bobbi and Hunter both know that they’re still being monitored. They’ve accepted their fate, and time has mostly healed those wounds. There are days that they still sting, but for the most part… they’re okay.

Until they get a letter. It’s nondescript at best, just their names and address scrawled on the business-class envelope untidily. It’s not a handwriting either of them recognize, and they look at the envelope with a suspicion normally reserved for bombs or poisonous animals.

“Should we open it?” Hunter asks after they’ve spent about five minutes with the envelope sitting on the table.

“I guess,” Bobbi says, biting her lip. “Who even has this address?” There’s a question underneath the one she asks; if they’re going to have to move again. Hunter shrugs his shoulders helplessly, and Bobbi reaches for the envelope, opening it gingerly. Nothing happens - the only thing inside is two folded sheets of paper, covered in the same messy handwriting as the outside of the envelope.

“Dear Bobbi and Hunter,” she begins, squinting at the words to decipher them. “I’m sorry if this letter caused any alarm, but I wanted to reach out to you. This is Phil, by the way.”

“Phil… Coulson?” Hunter interrupts. It’s not like they know any other Phils, but they also never called their ex-boss by his first name. 

“Shh,” Bobbi admonishes. “I’m reading.”

 

_ I’m here on a beach in Tahiti with Melinda - May, that is. It’s about six at night, and the sun is going down. The sunsets here are beautiful; Tahiti really is a magical place. Mel is drinking tea, but I’m having some scotch. I’m sure you’re wondering why any of this is relevant to you at all, so I’ll tell you. I’m dying. I won’t bother you with the messy details, as it’ll probably create more questions than it answers, but by the time you read this letter, I’m likely already gone. _

_ There are some things I want to say to you before I’m out of this world, though. The foremost is to thank you again for your sacrifice. I’m sorry that I ever put you in a position where that choice was necessary, but not a day goes by that I don’t thank you for it. S.H.I.E.L.D. exists because of you. I’ve been keeping tabs on you as best as I could these past two years, and I know that life hasn’t been easy, so I hope you find some solace in the fact that what you did meant something, and still means something. _

_ I had my doubts about both of you at different times in your careers; you’re both headstrong and, at times, stand-offish, not to mention the endless sarcasm and gray morality. But I don’t regret letting either of you stay - even with your missteps, you were both amazing agents with amazing hearts. I know that after telling you that I know life hasn’t been easy for you it’ll seem disingenuous, or maybe even rude, to say that I hope you’re happy. But I do hope you’re happy; you deserve as much.  _

_ Another reason I wrote you is to tell you that Mack will be taking up the mantle of Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. when I’m gone. He’ll want to call you, but he’ll think it’s the wrong choice, or that he’s abusing his power, or whatever excuse he can come up with. I’ve included his phone number; call him. I don’t know if he’ll be able to bring you back into the fold or not, but that call will mean the world to him. He hasn’t forgotten you. _

_ As for the rest of the team, I’m sure you heard a lot from Fitz when you helped him, Hunter, but there’s a lot that’s happened since, too. If you go back, things will be different. I suspect you know that already, though - you’re both smart (or Bobbi’s smart enough for both of you). _

_ I have to go now - the light’s almost gone. Don’t die out there.  _

_ Phil _

 

“And that’s it?” Hunter asks when Bobbi’s done reading.

“No, not quite…” She says, looking at the bottom of the piece of paper. “There’s a note from May.”

 

_ Phil died at six o’clock this morning; he saw one last sunrise. He wanted me to make sure this got to you, so I did. See you around, maybe. _

_ May _

 

“So Coulson’s…”

“Dead, yeah.” Bobbi finishes. She drops the letter onto the table, staring at it with an entirely different expression on her face.

“What do we - are we supposed to do something?” Hunter asks, dumbfounded. 

“I’m not sure there’s much we can do,” Bobbi says numbly. “Kind of a stupid letter. Hey, by the way, I’m dead. Thanks for everything!” She affects a faux-cheery tone for the latter half of her sentence, but sighs at the end. 

“Did you miss the part where he said he didn’t like our sarcasm?” Hunter says, nudging Bobbi to try to cheer a smile out of her. “Old codger. He’s just angry we were better at it than he was.”

“Yeah,” Bobbi agrees. She doesn’t smile. She glances from the envelope on the table to Hunter, and then back to the envelope. “I’m going to miss him,” she says quietly. “It’s different, you know. Before, at least they were -” Her voice breaks, and Bobbi stops speaking, pressing a fist to her lips as if she could somehow hold her words in.

“They were still here,” Hunter agrees, reaching out for Bobbi. She falls into his arms easily, sighing as she hooks herself around him. 

“I keep thinking I’ve run out of things to lose,” Bobbi sighs. She’d been pissed when they left S.H.I.E.L.D. - her whole life up in smoke. And then she’d been pissed when Hunter had gone off to help Fitz without her, just because they were having some stupid fight. Now she’s pissed again because Coulson is  _ gone _ and she and Hunter just get a crappy letter. Every time she thinks there’s nothing left to hurt her, something comes along.

“I know,” Hunter whispers, dropping a kiss into her hair. “I wish I could fix it, Bob.”

“I know,” she echoes back to him, squeezing him a bit tighter. “But you can’t turn back time, and you can’t raise the dead.” They both know if he could’ve, Izzy would be with them right now. Maybe things would have turned out differently, and maybe not, but… it would be enough just to have Iz back. It would be enough.

“No, I can’t.” Hunter decides again to try to make Bobbi smile. “Not like you’d trust me with those powers, though. I’d do something stupid.”

She finally cracks, the corners of her lips tugging up just slightly. “You would. And then I’d have to come clean up your mess.” Bobbi doesn’t sound upset about it. At least if Hunter’s creating messes, he’s alive. Neither of them need to say that on her ever-shortening list of things she could lose, he is at the top of it. 

Hunter nuzzles her cheek gently, and she returns the gesture. She doesn’t say she loves him, but he hears it all the same.

“Are you happy, Bobbi?” He asks her quietly. “Not right now, I mean, because Coulson’s dead, but… in general. Are you happy?” Like Coulson wanted them to be.

Bobbi’s lips purse slightly. “I’m happy enough, Hunter.” She noses at his cheek again, the rough stubble on his chin tickling her slightly. “I’m happy with you. Just not the circumstances.”

“I can accept happy enough.”

And he can - it’s not like he has much of a choice anymore. The world is colder without Coulson, and Hunter can’t make it warm again. 

All he can do is hold her. 

**Author's Note:**

> This has been sitting on my Google Drive for _forever_. If you're familiar with ER, the letter Bobbi and Hunter got is a mirror of Dr. Greene's letter to the ER staff when he dies.


End file.
